A hand reached out of the fountain grabbing the ledge, and with a single push, lifted its body out of the water. There, standing thigh deep in the fountain with water dripping down its body, was a metallic bronze man. The light of the glade reflected off his shiny body as well as the water beads that were slowly dripping down his muscular frame.

‘Why do I feel so strange… Huh?’ Botbot thought to himself for the first time.

He realized this fact immediately and his mind sprang into overdrive, reeling with thoughts and sensations never felt before.

Questions naturally arose in his mind like “Where am I? What am I? Who am I?” but those thoughts didn’t matter at the moment.

‘It feels so… nice.’ Botbot smiled, feeling more free than he had ever felt before. The ability to think was something someone who could always think, would take for granted.

He raised his arms and basked in the sun, feeling its heat penetrate his thick metal skin while he closed his eyes in thought.

There was one question that kept ringing throughout his mind and that was why? Why was he able to think? How was it possible for an Android— an artificial creation built by humans— able to think.

Did he evolve his own artificial intelligence so far that he gained sentience? Looking down at his new found body he realized that this probably wasn't the case, as it wasn't just his mind that changed.

As the water in the fountain stilled, an unfamiliar face reflected back into his eyes. The face was masculine, had a strong jawline and was decently handsome. At least according to its old database which he still remembered well, this was a good looking face.

His beautiful rectangular frame was no more, his body now looked like a human with his two arms, two legs and muscular torso. He might look like a human but seeing the light of the sun bounce off his bronze skin more than it did the water, he knew he probably wasn't exactly a human.

Of course it wasn't just his skin that was metallic, his hair, eyes, teeth and anything else you could name was also a metallic bronze.

He touched his face and could feel the sensation of touch, which tickled him due to the unfamiliarity of the sensation.

Reaching down, he grasped his arms and could feel the sheer hardness of his skin. He wondered how something so hard was able to move with the same flexibility as a living being.

He could bend his limbs, swivel his head and wiggle all of his fingers freely, something metal shouldn't be able to do— He wasn't complaining though.

TANG!

He slapped his forearm and a dull tang rang out like two hammers smashing against one another, then he tried to pinch it and found that it was squishy just like skin.

Squishy but hard skin, just what had his body become? There were more questions to add to the ever expanding list forming in his head.

He didn't know the answers to these questions but realized that right now, he didn't care because whatever had happened, was a good thing.

Then something caught his eye, he opened his legs further apart and was surprised to spot that— you know the thing all male creatures had— a penis.

‘Wow! I guess I'm a male?’ He curiously analyzed his little brother whilst pondering.

Naked and awkwardly bending over, he stood there with water dripping down his body as his mind raced with too many thoughts.

‘Let's get out of the fountain first,’ he decided. As he tried to climb out of the fountain, he noticed that moving his limbs felt strange and foreign. It was a paradoxical feeling— he felt comfortable in this body, but it felt like he had just woken up from a long coma and wasn't used to moving yet.

Moving his body was slow and heavy while his fine motor control wasn't there yet. The more he moved, the faster and more precise he got. Slowly he stepped over the ledge of the fountain and onto the stone platform below, being careful not to fall over.

His foot clanked against the stone below as it made first contact, then came the other leg, and now he was out of the fountain. He stretched his body trying to loosen up while surveying his surroundings, thinking of his plans for the future.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Should he go to Arcon? That wouldn't work, he thought.

He didn't have any identification and the security for anyone coming from the Bridge was extremely strict. There were plenty of dangerous things that could tag along for the ride back to Arcon, which is why the strict security was necessary for keeping the humans on Arcon safe.

But even if he ‘lost’ his identification on the Bridge, he was in no way registered in Arcon’s Crosser data bank. Being imprisoned was the least worrisome consequence he could think of showing up to Arcon and not being in their database.

For now the first thing he needed to do was simple— buy some clothes. He would contemplate the rest later.

There was only one place he could think of that he'd be able to buy clothes at, something only the Beast Glades had no other section did— a city called Gladesdale.

It wasn't big, more of a small town than anything, but it had everything you would expect a city to have; restaurants, pubs, entertainment and a lot more. Most importantly though, it had clothing stores.

While it was considered a city, it was impossible for buildings to be built like they were back on Arcon. Instead of skyscrapers made of metal, Gladesdale consisted of small to large buildings made of wood and stone found in the second section, the Lost Forest.

Attempts had been made to make a modern city on the Bridge, but it fell apart almost immediately due to the pure logistical nightmare transporting materials between realms was.

Every time you come back to the Bridge, it didn't matter which sections Lodestone you used, you would end up somewhere random in the Beast Glades. Even using materials from the Bridge is difficult due to the monsters, anomalies and the harsh environment that you would have to avoid.

The materials used in Gladesdale were mostly obtained from the very edge of the Lost Forest, trying to get a large quantity of resources through the main body of the Lost Forest would be a challenge even for the greatest Crossers.

It was a unique existence. The atmosphere there was cozy and comfortable, it was a place for many Crossers to relax, enjoy themselves and meet other Crossers.

That would be the best place to head to, Botbot figured.

He still had to figure out how to get there and then once he’s there, he would have to find a way into the city. He didn't know where the city was, he didn't have any identification to get into the city. Also he was flat out broke.

Looks like he was starting at rock bottom in his newfound life.

“As master— ahem, Ryan would say, just go with the flow.” He attempted to cheer himself up and put on a large smile.

That's when he realized that there was something on his chest that he recognized, something very important.

“Is this what I think it is?” He rubbed his chest where an emblem of three diagonally intersecting cubes was marked.

“It can't be? Is this an emblem?” He could tell the mark on his chest was 99.9999% an emblem, something only living beings had ever been able to get after bathing in any trial’s fountain.

If it wasn't an emblem he didn't know what it could be and there was one way to check and confirm if it truly was an emblem.

With a light tap, he touched his chest and a badge with the same emblem that rested on his chest, materialized in his hand.

The badge’s shape was a black diamond while the emblem was a bright metallic gold that reflected his amazed face.

“Oh!” He twirled around in excitement.

‘So this is what excitement feels like! It's amazing!’ Botbot couldn't help but celebrate.

It was an emblem, one of the most renowned things a person could have! Having one meant they had successfully completed a trial of the Bridge.

It was also something exclusively only humans from Arcon have ever had before. They had tested bathing other creatures from Arcon and even immaterial objects like androids in a Trial’s Fountain, but none had gotten an Emblem before.

He didn't know what this meant, but it at least reassured him that he was most likely in fact, alive.

He stopped spinning and concentrated on his emblem; he wanted to know what power it had granted him but was abruptly interrupted by a faint scream that was getting louder.

Looking in the direction of the scream, he spotted a short woman with long curly black hair covering most of her face. She wore similarly long dark garbs that seemed one size too large for her, and resting on top of her head was a midnight purple pointy hat.

‘A witch?’ Botbot thought, remembering some information from his old database after looking at her.

She was currently screaming at the top of her lungs while running away from a chubby boar beast slowly jogging after her. It was slightly comedic.

He stood still, silently staring at this woman who was quickly getting closer and closer to him, when he heard her scream, “Watch out!”

Not able to slow down, she ran straight into Botbot knocking both of them off their feet and onto the ground.

The boar skidded to a stop only inches away from the boundary of the stone platform, not taking a step further. It reluctantly grunted before waddling away looking for someone else to eat.

“Ouch ouch ouch.” The woman hurriedly stood up rubbing her forehead where a large red mark appeared.

“Oh my! I'm sorry for running into you!” She apologized and bowed with a nervous expression on her face.

“Let me help you up!” She reached down and grabbed Botbot’s arm trying to help him but she couldn't even budge him. She attempted a few more times before she fell backwards breathing out a deep sigh of exhaustion.

Botbot eventually stood up himself, patted off his butt, and watched as the woman's face went from nervous and exhausted to gobsmacked. Her jaw dropped and she looked away with a beating red face.

“Why are you naked!” She shrieked and crawled backwards keeping her distance from him.

Looking down at his current wardrobe condition, he tried to think of a way out of this situation. A simple excuse was all he needed— hopefully.

“Oh…well… I seemed to have lost my clothes.” He lied horribly.

“...You lost them?” She asked dubiously.

“It wasn't as simple as that. I was… running away from a beast but it managed to attack me and effortlessly rip through my clothes leaving me butt naked.” A somewhat acceptable story

he surmised.

A second of silence made his heart drop. Did she see through his lies?

“Oh no, that's horrible! At least you didn't get hurt though .” The woman seemed to buy it.

Botbot wiped imaginary sweat off his brow and courteously hid his junk behind his hands, not sure how to proceed with this woman.

Luckily the woman spoke up and said, “Here I have some spare pants with me, they should fit because they're quite baggy.” She took the large backpack she wore off her back and rummaged through it, pulling out a pair of baggy beige pants.

All the while covering her bright red face, she handed the pants over to Botbot who quickly put them on without too much trouble.

She sighed with relief once the pants were on him, and turned to face Botbot.

Botbot got a good look at her face and realized that she was young and very cute— in human terms. Botbot still didn't fully understand human aesthetics but he still knew that she was good looking.

“Sorry once again for running into you! I'm Iris by the way.” She reached out a petite hand.

“Hello Iris, my name is… Bo.” He improvised a name for himself and shook her hand.

Not only would this be the start of his new life as Bo, but also that of an interesting relationship between a strange group of people.